Got our first look at the team. We're going to have some pre-season conditioning in July, and I'm interested in who we got.
We have 2 kids coming back that will probably be monsters. One was last year's stud. One is probably going to be a monster this year. It looks like we have a few kids with some size this year. Looks like two to three new kids might be pretty good, encroaching on stud territory. Another kid might also be pretty good... we might be looking at a team with several studs. And we have a lot of kids who are small and fast that are not even on that list.
I think in general we're going to be bigger and stronger than last year, and we'll have more depth. It will be pretty interesting.
There's also a weird development. There is a dad who basically pulled me aside and told me his kid can throw the ball 40 yards. I don't know if his kid can actually do it... but the dad might be high maintenance. We'll see. 😀
I'm interested in who we got
How does your league work? Is this a draft on your part, or does your league set up the teams?
Parents lobbying for their kids is why you might want to get their times in the 20 & 40, and an object test of agility and strength. So if a parent say 'X" about their kid, you can show them you have 4 or 5 kids who are even more "X"....
Umm.... why does that 6 ft tall 9 yr old have a goatee...?
I'm interested in who we got
How does your league work? Is this a draft on your part, or does your league set up the teams?
Parents lobbying for their kids is why you might want to get their times in the 20 & 40, and an object test of agility and strength. So if a parent say 'X" about their kid, you can show them you have 4 or 5 kids who are even more "X"....
I'm not going to be influenced by people advocating for their child.
I'm not going to be influenced by people advocating for their child.
The reason for the "X-test" is less about you being influenced by a parent and more about the test shutting up said parent.
--Dave
"The Greater the Teacher, the More Powerful the Player."
The Mission Statement: "I want to show any young man that he is far tougher than he thinks, that he can accomplish more than what he dreamed and that his work ethic will take him wherever he wants to go."
#BattleReady newhope
@coachdp lol that's true. I had a coach who thought his kid was in the top 5 in terms of speed. Turns out he was middle of the road.
@coach-kyle - I had the reverse of this happen. My first year, all of the assistants told me at the first practice that "K should be used only on defense, he can't run the ball". Being new to the area, I said that I didn't care what someone did before I arrived and that I wanted all of the RB's to get the same chances. He ultimately won the job, and lead the team in rushing. He also did a heck of a job blocking when he wasn't running.
The point is to trust your instincts!
Fight 'em until Hell freezes over, then fight 'em on the ice -- Dutch Meyer
The point is to trust your instincts!
Forget instincts. Trust your eyes. There was a reason that every year we tried out every player at each position. I wasn't going to go by recommendations, past performance, physical appearance, etc. Each player got a chance to pass, catch, run, snap, punt and kick the ball. I had to see for myself who was capable of what, and then placing them at the best position for our team.
--Dave
"The Greater the Teacher, the More Powerful the Player."
The Mission Statement: "I want to show any young man that he is far tougher than he thinks, that he can accomplish more than what he dreamed and that his work ethic will take him wherever he wants to go."
#BattleReady newhope
The ability to throw 40 yards is pretty low on my list of qualities I like in a QB. Not talking DW either. This is what I look for in our "Empty" offense.
1) Coachability
2) Toughness (physical and mental)
3) Attendance
4) Leadership
5) Footwork
6) Accuracy
7) Arm strength
If I can't develop 1-6 in a player, I will never get around to 7. I've seen too many QBs with cannon arms ruin offenses because they:
1) know better than the coach (or are following Dad's instructions)
2) take all the reps in practice, but miss a quarter or two because they are hurt
3) miss enough practice that they affect the offense
4) alienate their teammates with their "me first" attitude
5) make the offense sloppy because they can't/won't get from A to B without tripping or getting in another player's way
6) can't complete a 3 yard out despite the ability to throw 40 yards
We had a QB competition last season. The kid I developed in Flex was behind our other QB in every category but height and arm strength. Flex QB had about 4-5 more yards in his arm. To me, it was a no brainer.
When in doot . . . glass and oot.
Had our first pre season conditioning today. I think I might be bad at judging the kid's size and stature... but it looks like the exact same story as last year. There must be something in the water. We have an adult obesity epidemic, but my kids are for the most part skinny. We've either got tall and skinny kids or short and skinny kids. Some of them are very athletic. Some of them less so.
I think with a team like this you run a lot of screen passes. Maybe we automatically go with 2 WR? Or maybe we double down on the beast and just make a flipping line with 2 small fast pulling lineman?
If I remember correctly, your guys are 8/9, right? At that age, I don't think size matters a lick. There are a few exceptions, but an 8 or 9 year old big boy typically can't move very well, plays bolt upright and doesn't use his size as an advantage.
When in doot . . . glass and oot.
Got our first look at the team.
Hi Coach,
We had a combine and a draft... we got a look at our kids for the 1st practice last night... After the combine I think their parents washed 'em in hot water and shrunk 'em. They are much tinier that I remembered from the combine. I mean, even tiny for their age-group, tiny. We better have some serious acceleration 'cause we ain't got much mass. 😆
Umm.... why does that 6 ft tall 9 yr old have a goatee...?
pre-season practice no. 2 in the books. We took everyone's height and weight. About 10 of 30 kids didn't show up, but we got most of their sizes. Apparently the average height of a 9 yr old is 52.6 inches. We're absolute giants compared to that standard. We have 7 kids over the 95th percentile, and I think we might have 2 others around the same height.
The same study says the average weight is 64 lbs. We're well between the 50th and 75th percentile, which I think was about 73 lbs. I think we may have 4 kids who are over 100 lbs, and apparently over 100 lbs is the 95th percentile. The weight limit is 130 lbs in the league... and I think last year there was only one kid in the league who was flirting with that, but when a kid is 110-120 lbs and fast... it matters big time. If I put a kid who is 65 lbs on the line, and he has to block a kid who is 120 lbs, even if that 120 lbs kid isn't very fast... I just worry about it. Also we can't cut. Yay youth football rules! The director is probably a big fat guy with big fat kids 😆
First practice yesterday. No pads, just helmets. We learned 3 point stances (which is a decision I made rather than 4 point stances). We learned splits. We learned sweep right and sweep left, and that’s it. I planned for a lot more. I’m not super worried about it. I seem to remember that the concepts are pretty slow going at first with this age. The helmets “hurt” a lot in the beginning. But I was pretty happy with how many of them were able to point to themselves in the drawn up pay and show what they were doing. They don’t get track blocking yet. We’re going to have to rep that tomorrow.
I think we can get Power/Sweep right/left in by tomorrow at least. We might get wedge in. Maybe counter. We’ll see how it goes. Then I think we can get defense in on the 3rd day. Then we hit.
The helmets “hurt” a lot in the beginning
Yep, same here. Gotta keep telling the kids they just gotta get used to them. That, and chin straps. Spend more time adjusting chin straps than I care to think about.
They don’t get track blocking yet
I've found that takes a while for some kids. Somewhere (maybe on this forum?) I picked up using the image of railroad tracks and being the train on those tracks knocking the cars off the track. Car on the track, hit it. Car not on track, keep the train moving down the tracks. Don't be surprised if it takes several practices for some the kids to get the idea. I believe its worth the time.
Umm.... why does that 6 ft tall 9 yr old have a goatee...?
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